Maturing
by FreakyGreenEyes123
Summary: Five years after Callie and Brandon ran away from home to be together, they return with some unexpected surprises... Stef discovers Callie takes after her more than she realized. Callie tries to bring herself to reveal some big news but something is holding her back. Brandon struggles to keep his own mouth closed, while the others find themselves caught in the couple's web of lies.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Reposting, editing, and completing this fic for Dramatic-ADD-Having-Ass-Writer (with her permission of course). **

* * *

**Stef's POV**

I arrive at work today and I feel completely exhausted. Gavin had a nightmare last night and slept in mine and Lena's bed.

_Her idea. _

_Definitely not mine._

I keep telling her that he's going to get accustomed to coming into our room and sleeping in our bed, but she doesn't listen.

I know that she believes me, and that she knows better. But she always gives into his puppy-dog eyes, and it's because of this that he sees me as the mean mommy.

And now I'm here, barely able to function, because Gavin kept digging his feet into my back all night, every time I finally passed out.

Not to mention, he literally kicked me off of the bed at 3am, so I just started my morning from there.

"Morning, Stef," Captain Robert's says as I grab my cup of coffee.

"Morning, ma'am," I respond, but I can tell that she has something on her mind by the way she's avoiding making direct eye contact with me at all costs while she grabs her apple. The fact that she doesn't even eat red apples is also a clear indication that something's wrong. "What's up?" I ask as my eyes move toward the round fruit in her hand.

She notices my movement and looks at the piece of fruit again before sighing and dropping it into the basket, "Okay, so it seems that Martinez has been transferred over to another unit."

I nod silently and try to hide the slight smile that formed on my face, "Wow…I thought he'd last a little longer," I say sarcastically. She knew that I despised the man. Or should I say kid. Martinez was only 23 years old, and I hardly felt like he had my back half of the time. He was an arrogant, prejudice, wannabe detective, who constantly undermined me. Putting up with that for two years was far from easy and I couldn't say I wasn't glad he was gone.

_Hell, he was probably glad he was gone. _

I was screaming with excitement in my head, when I heard her words and it seemed as if she knew it, because she was giving me a Yeah-right-I-know-you're-happy-as-hell look.

"So, I'm finally getting a new partner?" I ask excitedly but also nervously. I can't help but wonder, _What if he's Martinez x100?_ It wasn't a secret that Roberts never asked my permission when it came to who I was partnered up with. Secretly, I always wondered if she got a kick out of seeing me miserable, but never dared to ask.

"Yes, that's what I wanted to talk to you about actually," she starts.

I try to sound cool about it. "So what's he like?"

"She," Roberts corrects.

"A woman?" I ask in surprise. I've only ever had male partners, and it would definitely be a first for me. _Now, I'm thinking that this lady has to be super bossy if Roberts still wants to make me miserable…_

"Yes," she nods her head and looks down at the floor.

"Is she here?" I ask while glancing around the room for another female. A take another sip of my coffee. It's way too hot though, and I end up burning my tongue immediately.

"She's right behind you," Roberts says as she points in back of me.

I raise my eyebrows and whirl around slowly, so that I don't appear to be staring at the woman.

The moment I see her, I drop my mug on the floor, causing the glass to shatter and the coffee to splash all over my shoes.

"…Callie?"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Flashbacks are in General POV.**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

The moment Stef sees me she freezes and immediately drops her coffee mug onto the floor.

And the 30 seconds that she spends just staring at me with her mouth hung open feels like the longest 30 seconds of my life.

"Callie?" I finally hear her say and I know that she doesn't believe I'm here either.

I smile at her and nod my head slightly, completely unsure of how she is going to react.

_She remembers me. That's a start._

_Then I remember that it was my decision to come back. _

_I was the one that said I was ready._

_I should be the one to approach her first. _

Even though, I honestly was afraid, that she'd developed a strong hate for me over the years.

_For stealing her son from her._

_And for abandoning them all._

I slowly make my way over to her, and Captain Roberts walks away from her side, leaving us alone.

"Hey, Stef," I start as I offer her my hand to shake, but she doesn't take it. Instead she keeps her eyes focused on my own, and I have to glance down to shake my fear away.

_This is exactly what I was afraid of._

This tis the part where I begin to question my decision to come back.

_I knew that there was a purpose,_

_And that the purpose was worth it._

_But I couldn't help but feel like a complete failure at this very moment._

I remove my un-touched hand from the air and walk around blonde woman, grabbing the coffee pot and filling a mug for myself.

She still hasn't moved an inch from where she had been standing, which didn't put me at ease either.

Suddenly, I wish she had reacted.

If she was angry, I wanted her to show it.

This silence was a thousand times worse than any reaction she could have concocted.

I take a small sip of the black coffee and glance around to look for the Captain, but she's nowhere to be found.

I glance down at my mug, and before I take another sip, I quickly stop myself as I remember the reason I why came.

_I'm not supposed to be drinking coffee. _

The coffee mug drops onto the floor too, causing the hot liquid to splatter over the floor again.

"Crap!" I whisper as I quickly bend over and start picking up all of the porcelain pieces that we both dropped onto the floor. _Nice going, Callie! _I yell in my head. And as soon as I grab most of the pieces, I walk over to the garbage can to throw them out.

But by the time I turn around, Stef isn't standing in the same spot where she had been just a few seconds ago.

In fact, I don't see her at all.

I try my best not to cry at the fact that she really thought she had to run from me.

Instead I grab some paper towels and try to soak up the coffee off from the floor.

* * *

**Stef's POV**

As soon as Callie turned her head away from me, I snapped out of it and ran to the bathroom.

This didn't feel real.

Five years of no contact and this is how she shows up?

She's a cop?

I don't even know if she's still in contact with my son.

But I do know I could never bring myself to ask.

_**FLASHBACK** _

_A year Lena and Stef adopted Jude, they thought that they were finally going to be able to adopt Callie. Everyone except for Brandon, waited at the courthouse to be called inside by the judge. _

_Just as they all thought that they'd all be able to go home and legally be considered a family, Brandon showed up and ruined everything for Stef._

_She told him to stay home for this, if he didn't think he could handle it. And he agreed. _

_But when he arrived and began walking over to them, she couldn't help but get a bad feeling._

"_Brandon, what are you doing here?" Stef asked with both worry and anger evident through her voice, as she pulled him to the side quick enough so that he couldn't see or speak to Callie._

"_I can't let this happen, Mom," he said softly._

"_Leave now, B. Before you make this worse. This isn't up for discussion," she ordered as she glanced over at Callie, who was facing the opposite direction, completely oblivious to the fact that Brandon was there._

_He stared at his mother for a while and looked over my shoulder to see Callie. "I know it's not," he said as he started to walk over to her. Stef tried to grab his arm to stop him from making a mistake, but he snatched it right back from her grasp and kept walking over toward the girl._

_When Callie finally saw him, she gave him a concerned look. "Brandon, what's wrong?" she asked as she stared into his eyes searching for the answer._

"_I don't want you to do this, Callie. You shouldn't have to chose between us."_

_Lena stood up from her seat next to Jude. "Brandon," she scolded._

_He turned his attention to her, "No! I'm tired of you two trying to break us apart. It's not going to happen, okay? We're in love! And if you two can't see that, then this is never going to work," he said while gesturing to their surroundings. "How can you tell us that you love us, but try to keep us apart at the same time, when you know how we feel? What we feel for each other isn't going to go away. It's been over a year and everything we've gone through has only brought us closer. Don't you see it?" _

_Lena stared back at her son in surprise and looked at her wife in desperation._

_Brandon glanced away from Lena and knelt down in front of Callie, "Please don't give up on us. I know that we can make this work if you fight for it too."_

_Stef quickly pulled Brandon off of the floor, "That's enough, Brandon. We're tired of this. We're not going to allow you to tear this family apart right now. This is supposed to be a peaceful day."_

_Brandon yanked himself away from her grasp. "For who?" Brandon asked. "For you? Because it's definitely not a peaceful day for Callie and I. In fact, it's the exact opposite."_

"_Callie wants to be a part of this family. You need to realize that it's not always about what you want."_

"_But I love him too," Callie's voice croaked as she stared at the blonde. It was the first time she ever admitted it to anyone else besides Brandon, and it even caught her by surprise._

_Stef sat down in the seat next to her and took a deep breath before continuing, "Callie, I know that this is confusing for you right now. But you two will get over it eventually, I promise you... Okay?" She eyed the teen with desperation in her own eyes, begging her to believe what she was saying and begging her to agree._

_Callie shook her head with resistance. "I don't think we will though," she cried._

"_You have too," Stef said sternly, taking on another tone. "It's the only way we can all be a family. I won't condone this relationship in my house."_

"_Stef, I need to talk to you," Lena interrupted._

"_It can wait, Lena," Stef assured her._

"_No it can't."_

_The blonde got up to follow Lena, but before doing that she glanced at her son. "You have to let her go, Brandon. It's going to destroy everything," she finished as she followed her wife out of the waiting room._

_**END OF FLASHBACK**_

Those were the last words and the last time I'd seen my son.

And that was also the most regrettable decision I made.

I rinse my face off with water in the sink and try to catch my breath.

After everything that happened, Callie finally decided to come back… And I just left the room?

Hurting her once again…

Moments later, I hear the door open and I glance up to see her reflection looking back at me through the mirror."

She closes the door behind her, "Look, Stef. I owe you a huge apology. Brandon and I should have never left like that, and I am truly sorry. I know that I took the most important person of your life away, and it was the most selfish decision that I've ever made. But we both hoped to come back and to try to make amends with you. But that's only if you'd let us."

I watch her stand there nervously as she waits for me to respond.

"…Two," I finally say.

"What?" she asks in confusion.

"You took away _two_ of the most important people of my life," I finish.


	3. Chapter 3

**Callie's POV**

I walk into the bathroom and see Stef rinsing her face off with water. I missed her so much and I fought every bone in my body and every thought in my head to refrain from running up to her and hugging her.

Mainly out of fear of her shutting me out, like she had just done a few minutes ago.

_But I had to be strong about this. _

_I had come too far to back down now._

_She's already seen me. The hardest part is over, right?_

_But why did I still feel like crap about it?_

She glances up at the mirror and stares at me as if she'd seen a ghost.

_Just say it Callie_, I think to myself. And after a few seconds, I bring myself to say what needed to be said, "Look, Stef. I owe you a huge apology. Brandon and I should have never left like that, and I am truly sorry. I know that I took the most important person of your life away, and it was the most selfish decision that I've ever made. But we both hoped to come back and to try to make amends with you. But that's only if you'd let us."

She slowly turns around to face me and I can see the tears welling up in her eyes, which just makes me feel even worse for making her cry. I didn't want to upset her any more than I already had. And I can't help but fear that she's going to tell me she hates me and ask why the hell I even came here in the first place.

"Two," she says.

"What?" I ask in a barely audible voice, wondering if she actually heard me.

Stef wipes away a tear that had fallen onto her cheek, "You took away _two_ of the most important people of my life."

I gulp loudly at her response, silently wondering how she felt about us now. "Stef, I…" I can't find the right words to say so I stop myself. My emotions were getting the best of me with every second that I'm spending staring at her face. So I glance down at the floor instead. "I'm really, really sorry. I didn't want to leave you guys. Neither of us did. We just…" I pause as I try to search my thoughts.

_I practiced this._

_I memorized exactly what I was supposed to say, but nothing was going as planned._

_She wasn't supposed to run from me._

_I wasn't supposed to cry. _

_And more importantly, she wasn't supposed to say those words._

By the time I glance back up, I see her coming towards me. And before I know it, I feel her tight embrace around my body, "I know, baby. I know. You have nothing to be sorry for… I should have accepted the way you and Brandon felt about each other. I shouldn't have pushed you two away like that. I'm the one who should be sorry. Not you. God, I was so selfish!" She held onto my head as if I'd try to leave again if I didn't believe her. I lift my arms and hug her back, letting her know that I had no intention of leaving again.

"No, Stef. You're not selfish. If anything, I was. I should've tried harder to be the person all of you wanted me to be," I cry into her shoulder.

But Stef lets go of the embrace, cups my face with her palms, and looks into my eyes, "No, Callie. Don't say that. Don't you ever say that, okay? You shouldn't have to change who you are or how you feel about anyone. I, of all people, should have known better than to make you feel that way."

I shake my head and just let even more tears run down my face, "But I left you. And I left Jude. And—"

Stef holds my face still and wipes the tears that fell onto my cheek with her thumbs, "And are you and Brandon still together?" she asks in a stern voice.

At first, I'm afraid to answer her. Not knowing which answer was the right one. But I nod my head yes, which causes her to smile, "…And do you regret the past 5 years you spent together?"

"No," I answer softly and truthfully. "I don't regret a second that I spent with him."

"Then, don't regret leaving, yes?" She tilts her head to the side as she looks at me and I nod. "…I would've done the same thing for Lena."

I finally breathe and try to stop crying until she decides to pull me into another embrace.

After a long while of just silence, she finally speaks. "A cop? Really?" she asks sarcastically.

I have to laugh at her reaction, "Not happy?"

She pulls me away, "That you took after your mother? Noooo…Why wouldn't I be happy about that?" She chuckles and kisses my forehead, removing a few hair strands out of my face. "...But Mama on the other hand, is going to be so pissed."

I laugh at the thought of telling her, "She can't get as mad as Brandon was when I first told him I was entering the academy." I smile as I recount the scene in my head.

"I bet," she laughs. "That sounds like my son. He took after Mama in a lot of things,"  
she shakes her head at the thought. "…How is Brandon? When will I get to see him?" she asks eagerly with a desperate smile on her face.

"Soon," I assure her. "He's doing a little surprising of his own as we speak."

Stef wraps her arm around mine as we leave the bathroom. "Oh, no," she laughs. "Should we be worried?"

"I hope not…partner," I say, knowing that it'd get a strange reaction out of her.

"Partner?" she smiles as we walk over to the coffee machine. "That sounds so weird. Doesn't it?"

I nod as she grabs the coffee pot and a couple of mugs, "Do you think we can manage to not spill the coffee all over the floor this time?"

"Can't make any promises, Callie. But we can sure as hell try."

* * *

**A/N: In case you haven't noticed this is a Brallie fic. Although there is some Brallie in here, it's mostly a FAMILY ORIENTED fic, heavy on Stef/Callie's relationship (They are working together so I would presume that you would've gotten that by now.) That is why I hadn't added the "Brallie" connotation in the summary from the beginning ,because it will not be focussed solely on that. And I know how some of the readers are when it comes to seeing the word "Brallie." Now that you've gotten the basic premise of the story, and if you still choose to stop reading that's not a problem. I completely understand. But I didn't want to put the "Brallie" label when it's so much more than just a Brallie. But that's my opinion. **

**Personally, I don't think that fics really need the "Brallie" label because non-brallie fics don't need a "Non-Brallie" label... And some people are super-against "Brallie" and some are super-against having Brandon and Callie just be siblings.**

**The previous writer was a lot like me, so that's why she allowed me to take over. She knew that I had no intention in turning this into a "Purely-Brallie" fic because (let's be honest) those are SO BORING. (No offense if I have some hard-core-only-Brallie-reading-type-readers) All of my readers know how heavy I am on the Stef/Callie relationship, so I plan to include a lot of that in here. All of the other main characters will of course be included so don't worry about that either. **

**P.S: I will be updating Burned later on tonight and thanks for reading :)**

**Please review if you have the time letting me know what you thought. **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I'm really trying to update this quickly to get to where the other writer left off. Combined three small chapters here so this one is a little longer than the rest. If you remembered a specific one by heart, just know that the numbers won't be the same and I'm constantly adding stuff.**

* * *

**Lena's POV**

Just as I thought I could finally get a break and go out to lunch, I hear my office phone ring. I was grabbing my jacket and was literally about to head out the door.

_Why did it have to ring? _I think to myself. _Don't answer it! Don't answer it! _I try to persuade my conscience but something in my gut told me to at least glance at the caller ID. Reluctantly, I let out a deep breath and walked back over to my desk.

I immediately pick up the receiver and hold it to my ear when I see the name, "Hello, Mrs. Glaser. Is everything alright?" I ask worriedly.

"Lena. I'm so glad you picked up. We're having a little bit of a problem here with Gavin…"

"What kind of a problem? Is he alright?" My nerves were getting even worse.

"No, no, nothing like that. He's fine."

"Then…"

"He bit one of the other students today."

"He what?" I screech. _I cannot believe this is happening right now._ "Are you sure it was him? What did he say about it?"

"Yes, we're positive it was him. And he said that he only did it because she took all of the red crayons. And well, I'm calling you because he's demanding to go home now."

I place my hand on my forehead, close my eyes, and let out a breath of frustration, "Can I talk to him please?"

"Yes one moment…"

"Hi," the small voice says.

I try to remain calm, "Gavin, what is going on?"

"I wanna go hhome Mommy," his voice sounds so sad as if he had been crying and my heart goes out to my son. I hate hearing that tone in his voice and knowing that I can't be by his side this very moment. But I can't leave work in the middle of the day, every time he asked me to do so.

I fight back my emotions, "You can't come home, sweetie. You have to stay in school. We talked about this, remember?"

"But I donwanna be here no more," I hear him gasping for breaths as he sobs into the phone.

"Baby, I'm sorry but I can't come get you right now. You're only there for a little bit longer and I'll pick you up as soon as I get out."

"But I, I hate it h-here. Julie t-took all da crayons n Miz Glazer scream at-at me."

"Did you bite Julie?" I ask sternly. Gavin stays silent, as if I wouldn't know he was still holding the phone to his ear by his small breaths. "Gavin, I know you're still on the phone. Did you bite Julie?"

"No?" he says in a barely audible voice.

"Remember what I said about lying to me Gavin?"

"Dat I not supposeto do it."

"Yes," I remind him. "Did you bite Julie?"

"Yes, but—"

"No buts Gavin. You have to apologize to Julie."

"But—"

"Gavin," my voice became louder.

"But Jul—"

"No," I stop him.

Or at least try to.

"Julie take all of dem fur herzelf. You tell me I suppose to share but Julie don share wit me."

"That doesn't mean you have to bite her, baby."

"I hhate her!" the little boy yells into the phone.

I have to fight back a laugh and was grateful, that I was only on the phone with my son. Because if he could see me right now, he would've not learned his lesson. "Honey, you don't hate her. You have to apologize to her, because boys don't bite girls."

"I culd only bite boys?"

"No, you can't bite anyone."

"Not even wen dey took all da crayons?"

"Exactly."

"But why?"

"Because it's not a nice thing to do. People don't go around biting people when they get mad. That's not how we solve our problems, remember."

I hear his small sigh before he speaks, "Okay, Mommy. I won bit her no more. Don fo-forget me wen you got out of work, okay?"

"I won't forget if you promise not to bite anyone or give Mrs. Glaser a hard time. Deal?"

"Uhuh," he says depressingly.

"And say sorry to Mrs. Glaser too."

"I didn't bit her," he answers matter-of-factly.

"I know that, baby. But you gave her a hard time."

"Zorry Miz Glazer… My mommy toll me to tell you dat," he says softly and it's obvious that he doesn't mean it.

I shake my head at my son's honesty. I did tell him not to lie. "All right, I love you Gavin."

"I luv you too mommy," he finishes.

Just as I was about to hang up the phone, I receive another phone call. But this time it was my secretary. I have no choice but to answer it, being that I have to walk passed her on my way outside.

I sigh as I pick up the receiver again, "Yes Monica?"

"Lena, I have someone here wanting to see you. Should I send him in?"

"I'm about to go out to lunch. Is it important?"

"Yes, he says it's urgent."

I bite my lip, "Fine, send him in." I say as I quickly hang up the phone. _This better be quick_, I think to myself.

* * *

**Brandon's POV**

I'm standing in the secretary's office, waiting for her "okay" to enter Lena's. I can't help but feel incredibly nervous about this, but Callie and I agreed that it was time.

Well… to be honest, she thought it was time and told me I didn't really have a choice in the matter. But we're married and she made it very clear that she wanted to do this.

But what she didn't realize was, that I was definitely going to receive more hell from this than she was.

_I was the one who couldn't leave well enough alone. _

_I was the one who pushed Callie away from the entire family._

_I was the one who showed up that day, just as she was about to get adopted, and ruined that for all of them._

My mom's words echoed in my ears for years: _"You have to let her go, Brandon. It's going to destroy everything."_

_What if she still felt the same way?_

_Would that mean Lena did too?_

I have a bad feeling that neither of my mothers would ever forgive me for taking Callie and leaving the way that we did. More importantly, I was afraid of their reactions. I was afraid that they'd glance the other way or Lena would kick me out of her office the moment I opened the door.

_But I had to do this for Callie, _

_And for our unborn-child._

They might not want anything to do with us, but they should at least know that we were having a baby.

This baby shouldn't have to suffer, not knowing their grandmothers because of our mistakes.

_That was the most important thing in all of this._

I knock on Lena's office door lightly and hear her voice, "Come in."

When I open the door, her face goes from a smile to a completely flat expression. Her mouth opens slightly and her eyes widen at the sight of me. I'm not exactly sure whether the shock is a good thing or a bad one, so I figure I should talk first. "Hey Mom," I say as I close the door behind me.

"Oh my God, Brandon!" she screeches as she stands up and runs over to hug me, almost knocking me over in the process. "Thank God you're okay!" she says as she grabs my chin in her hand and examines my face, "I am so mad at you!" she says and then pulls me in for another hug.

I have to laugh at her reaction. It was between excitement, shock, and anger all at once. "I know. And you have every right to be. I screwed up big time."

She pushes me away from her embrace and I can see her eyes welling up with emotion, "You're okay. That's all that matters now… Where's Callie?" she smiles as she wipes away her tears before they escape her eyes.

I give her a quizzical look, wondering exactly how she knew that Callie and I were still together. "Huh?"

"What? You didn't think that I'd believe you both ran away together and spent five years away from your family, if you just broke up a year later? Did you?" she asks accusingly but playfully. "How is she?"

I smile as I remember how much more understanding Lena was as compared to Mom. "She's okay. We're great actually. She went to go see Mom at the station."

"The station?"

"Yeah…I think that's some news, that she'd better tell you."

Lena raises her eyebrows with concern.

I laugh at the worried look on her face, "She didn't get arrested again or anything like that, if that's what you're thinking."

"Well, that's good to hear," she says, finally letting out the breath she had been holding in since I walked in. She glances down at my hand and lifts it to see my wedding ring better, "And you two are married? When did that happen?"

"Almost three years ago," I smile.

"Wow! That was really soon. Your mom and I were together for ten years before we finally tied the knot, and you two did it in what? Two? Oh, speaking of your mom, she is going to be so excited to see you!"

We were both interrupted by a knock on the door, "Who is it?" Lena asks.

"It's me," a voice I don't recognize says.

Lena smiles and looks back at me. "Come on in, sweetie."

* * *

**Jude's POV**

I run over to Mom's office door and knock on it, hoping that she didn't go out to lunch already. But with my luck, she probably already has.

"Who is it?" she asks.

_Thank God she's still here_, I thought. "It's me."

"Come on in, sweetie," I hear her respond. _Phew… she's alone._

But the moment I open the door, I suddenly wish I hadn't. "What are you doing here?" I yell.

"Jude," Mom scolds, but I ignore her.

"Why did you come back?" I ask as I walk in and slam the door shut behind me.

Brandon looks ashamed and he should be. "Look Jude, I know you are mad at me and you have every right to be—"

"Damn straight!" I interrupt.

"Jude, that's enough! Now, say you're sorry."

I just glare at him and I fight every bone in my body not to punch him in the face. "He's lucky he's still standing up!"

"Jude!" She looks at me and then at Brandon, "Brandon, he doesn't mean that."

"Yes, I do! Don't tell me what I mean by my own words!"

Brandon takes a step toward me, "Jude, I know that what I did was unforgiveable—"

"Then why'd you come back?" I snap.

"Because Callie and I thought it was time to stop running. And we missed you guys."

"Callie doesn't miss me! If she actually cared about me, she would have never left!"

"She does miss you, Jude. She didn't want to leave you, but we thought it was the only way."

"It's all your fault she left! If it weren't for you, Callie would still be part of this family! But you took her from me! And I want nothing to do with either of you anymore!" I say as I open the door, walk out, and slam it back shut.

I hear my mom call after me, but I make sure not to turn back around. I know that nothing good would come of it.

_**Flashback**_

_Jude knocked on Callie's door lightly, hoping that Mariana wasn't in her room getting ready too._

"_Come in," Callie said._

_The boy slowly opened the door and saw Callie in an aqua blue dress. "You look very pretty," he compliments._

_She turned around, "And you look very handsome... Hey Jude, can you help me with this bracelet? I've been trying to put in on for almost ten minutes," she said embarrassingly._

"_Sure," he said as I walked over to her and put the bracelet on her wrist. "So are you excited about today?"_

"_More like nervous," she answered honestly. "But excited in there somewhere."_

_He laughed, "We're finally going to be a family."_

"_We already are, buddy," she said as she spiked up his hair._

"_You know what I mean. Legally. They can't send you back now," he joked._

"_Oh, thanks!" she laughed. "…Jude?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Can you promise me something?"_

"_What?" he asked worriedly. _

"_You know that I love you. And that no matter what happens today, that won't ever change."_

"_Callie, what are you talking about? You're finally getting adopted today! Why are you so worried?"_

_She gave him a nervous smile, "I don't know, Jude. I just…well, with everything that's been going on since we got here. With having your dad sign the adoption papers, to finding out that he wasn't even my biological father and then—"_

"_And then when Robert refused to sign the papers," he finished for her._

"_Exactly... I just don't want to believe it, until its actually final. So, just promise me that nothing is going to change, no matter what happens today. And promise me that you won't cry if it doesn't work out again," she said as she put her hand on his cheek._

"_Callie, it's going to work out this time," Jude assured her._

"_Jude, just promise, okay?"_

"_Okay, I promise," he confirmed before she kissed his forehead and hugged him._

_**End of Flashback**_

I immediately run out of the office and begin to walk home. There was no way in hell that I was staying there.

Not with him.

I don't care if moms ground me until the end of time. I refuse to have to look at his face.

I know that I broke my sister's promise, but I also know that she lied to me too. She promised that she would keep loving me.

That nothing would ever change.

The past five years proved to me that she never meant anything she said that day.

* * *

**A/N: So I just realized the previous writer was spot on about Robert refusing to sign the papers. I'm guessing she didn't know his name then so I filled it in, but I thought that was kind of cool. And next chapter, we'll get back to the Stef and Callie situation.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry if this comes up as a new chapter and you already read it. I think the site deleted it because it's not showing up... Something freaky is going on :O**

**A/N: So thanks to a very careful reader, I've realized the mistake that was made before about the lunch/morning situation. If you didn't notice the mistake, I've fixed the time frame and added this chapter, so that it makes more sense and doesn't awkwardly jump from morning to afternoon. So this was added before lunchtime, when Callie, Stef, Lena, and Brandon got together. That's why this update took so long. It's a completely new chapter. Thank you for the idea :) **

**Also, I've gotten another review regarding the Brallie issue. So as for that, I will be keeping the previous Brallie moments that were included in the fic before it was taken over and of course adding more. I know that this is a Brallie story and I have no problem with that. And even though I'm not a hard-core Brallie fan, I really do prefer Callie with Brandon to anyone else. (Seeing Callie with Wyatt seriously pisses me off to the point of no return, and I can't honestly say I was upset about the season 2a finale). I just don't really write my other fics about Brallie, simply because I prefer to write about the family aspect and Stef/Callie's relationship more. I wouldn't have taken this fic on, if I didn't honestly believe that Brallie was going to happen in the end and didn't support their relationship. **

**As for those of you that don't like to read serious Brallie scenes, I will warn you if the entire chapter is focused on Brallie and give you a short summary in the next one if you missed anything important to the story.**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

I grab the coffee that Stef hands me, not wanting to give the baby news away just yet. Brandon and I promised that we would do that together with the whole family there, and I didn't want to mess that up. I sipped it slowly, hoping that she wouldn't notice that I was barely drinking out of my mug.

Caffeine was a big no-no for me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice her trying to hide a laugh as she sips her coffee.

Automatically, I become paranoid and assume that she can read it off of me. _Was I showing?_ I question myself as I glance down and can't seem to notice a difference in the size of my belly. _Did Brandon lie to me when he said I looked absolutely fine this morning?_

"What's so funny?" I ask her nervously as I try to pretend to drink my coffee again.

"No. Nothing. I just…I can't believe that someone, in his or her right mind, would hand you a gun," she says as laughs out loud this time.

"I can say the same thing about you," I tease.

"Oh please, _Rooki_e, step aside," she says as she pushes me out of the way gently and fills her travel mug up with more coffee.

"You're seriously going to call me a Rookie?"

"I seriously am… There's no leeway here, my friend," she smiles.

"Why thank you," I tell her as I take the snatch the keys from her desk, as she takes a sip of her coffee, "Then I guess, I'm driving."

Stef's mouth drops open and I can tell a sense of hint of regret by the look on her face, "Uhhh…that's not what I meant," she argues and she tries to walk over to snatch the keys from me but I stuff them in my pocket and start walking towards the door with her following right behind me.

"That's what you said," I tell her.

* * *

"Hold on, you two!" Captain Roberts calls from the doorway of the office. "Before either of you try to go out and save the world, I need to make sure you're not going to blow it up first!" she calls out which causes both of our mouths to drop open. "My office," she orders as Stef and I both stare at each other with baffled expressions as we hear a few chuckles from our other co-workers.

Our Captain walks farther into her office and we start to make our way over.

"For someone who calls someone else a rookie, it doesn't seem as if you're getting treated with any more authority than I am," I whisper to Stef.

"Watch it," she warns and I have no choice but to hide my laugh as we enter Roberts' office.

When I first sat down with an interview with her, she did appear very intimidating, but the fact that Stef seemed just as intimidated as I was, makes me feel both happy and nervous at the same time. We both entered the room to see Captain Roberts sitting at her desk, "Have a seat," she says but before Stef is able to sit, Roberts stops her, "Close the door first, Foster."

"Sure thing," Stef answers and for some reason I feel like I'm the one that got her in trouble. I watch her as she closes the door gently and walks back over to her seat.

"Relax, you two. I'm not hear to yell at you…yet," she adds with a smile and I'm not sure if I should smile with her or not because I still feel slightly intimidated.

"Well, that's a good thing," Stef mentions as she takes sip of her coffee.

"But I do need to talk to you two about how this is going to work…"

"Okay," I answer.

"Yeah. Absolutely," Stef replies.

"I want to make sure we're all on the same page. And understandably Stef, I was very reluctant about giving you another family member as a partner…especially after everything that happened with Mike…"

"Then, why did you?" Stef asks in honest confusion. "I mean, not that I'm not happy about it, because I am. Believe me, I am. But I don't…"

"Because I knew that you'd be perfect for it. She needs to be trained and what better person to show her the ropes than her own mother? …I know that you'd teach her to be smart and prepare her for every possible scenario she will walk into, but there is a catch…"

"There's always a catch," Stef informs me.

"Yes, there is," Roberts assures. "As of right now this is only a temporary partnership between you two. At any point in time, if I get even an _inkling_ that something is wrong or this partnership isn't working, I will give you both new partners. As of right now, you will be the one to train her, Foster. _But_ if there's even a hint of impropriety, then I will find someone who will. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Stef answers with a nod of her head.

"I'm serious."

"Oh, I know you are," Stef chuckles.

"And what about you?" Roberts asks as she looks at me.

"I get it," I assure her.

"Good… First things first, I want to make sure you can handle a gun."

"I can."

Stef chuckles again, and I give her a dirty look. I turn to face our Captain again to explain that I've just gotten out of the academy but she puts her hand up to stop me.

"I know that you think you can, but I'd prefer to hear it from one of my own," Roberts explains. "What you learn in the academy and what you learn on the street are two very different things. So you two will be going to a _real_ training lesson, which will hopefully be beneficial for both of you. And Foster, it wouldn't hurt to brush up on your skills a little bit too…"

Stef gasps out loud which causes me to smirk.

"And JacobsFoster, you're what we call a rookie here, so you're going to need all the practice you can get. And just because your mom is your partner, doesn't mean you can ignore her input because you think she's annoying. While you're on the job, she's your partner."

"No, I understand."

"And Stef, that doesn't mean you can be that same nagging-parent I bet you were at home either. Same goes for you. Callie is your partner here, not your daughter. Leave all of the drama and thoughts for the home and after 5p.m. Got it?"

"Uhuh," Stef answers with another nod.

"All right… Now, both of you get out of my office. Your training lesson started at 9:30, and you're already ten minutes late. This is what I'm talking about…"

"Ma'am—" Stef starts as she tries to defend but Roberts interrupts her.

"No, Foster. There will be no special treatment. Go," she instructs as she points us out.

Stef and I both mumble very sarcastic 'yeses' before we walk out the door and out of the building.

* * *

"Well, that was embarrassing," Stef says the second we are out of earshot.

"For which one of us?" I ask in pure confusion.

"Well, I don't know. I was just lectured by my boss in front of my daughter. Who do you think it was more embarrassing for?"

"Not your daughter, remember?" I tell her as I pull the keys out of my pocket and give her a stern look.

"Oh, you'll always be my daughter," she answers from the other side of the car, as I unlocked it.

"You didn't listen to a word she said, did you?" I asked as I made my way in.

"Of course I did," she assures me as she opens the car door. "But I'm your mama before anything… And she already knows I take everything she says very lightly."

"Yeah, I can tell. It's obvious she thinks very highly of you," I respond sarcastically as I turn on the engine.

"Please don't remind me," she says as she puts on her seatbelt.

"You're seriously putting on your seatbelt?" I ask her.

"My love, if you drive anything like you did when I first started teaching you, I'm going to need to be dead-bolted to my seat," she laughs.

"I don't…I drive faster," I smile as I quickly reverse out of the parking space and come to a hard stop, knowing that it would make her nervous.

"Oh God, Callie. You've come back just to kill me," she says while she holds onto the assist-handle with one hand, trying hard not to look at the windshield in front of her.

"Relax, Foster. I was only joking," I tell her as I drive a little more slowly and smile a little when I can feel the glare being given to me.

To be continued…


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Again, sorry this chapter took forever. I've combined two, added the first one, and tweaked the second so that's what happened there.**

* * *

_Noon_

**Callie's POV**

I watch as the trainer rolls up Stef's shooting target, which has a total of 14 holes, and hands it over to me along with a rubber band. I can't help but smile when she comes back from the bathroom.

"What are you doing?" she asks the second she sees the smirk on my face.

"Taking your target home with me. And maybe to the station to show the captain. I'm sure she'd be interested to see that you just shot the poor guy seven different times in very lethal areas."

"You better not," Stef jokes as she tries to grab the poster from me, but I pull it away as we let ourselves out of the building. "It was windy… The paper kept blowing away and I couldn't get a clear shot."

"Uhuh, windy… and that's what happened..."

"Callie, we're lucky he passed us. You shot two innocent people in there if I recall correctly… Or should I go in and ask for the footage to show her?"

"I shot two cutout dummies because you screamed at me from behind out of nowhere! For no reason…" I try to defend.

"Not for no reason. I was preparing you."

"Preparing me for what? Psychotic people, scaring me from behind, while I have my gun pulled out?! I don't think that anyone besides you is crazy enough to do that."

"You never know what you're going to run into, my love. You need to prepare yourself for anything. You could've really hurt those people."

"Yes, except do I have to really remind you that they weren't people..."

"They could've been," Stef says matter-of-factly and stares at me sternly, which causes me to sigh. _Why was she already trying treating me like her kid?_ "You know," I start, "I'm almost positive you didn't treat your old partner like this…"

"So you think I'm being hard on you?" she raises her eyebrows.

"Not exactly," I try to defend. "I think you don't realize you're being hard on me. Or maybe you do, and this is all just a big joke to you."

"I don't think that at all. I don't," she repeats. "Guns are not a joke."

"Fine," I agree as I put the car in reverse and pull out of the parking lot. "…Hey, why did that guy pass us anyway? I thought if you hit the wrong targets, you're supposed to fail… Isn't that the whole point of these training sessions?"

"Oh, because I knew him," Stef responds as if it were no big deal.

"You knew him?" I ask in confusion. "Isn't it illegal to take the exam by someone you know?"

"It's illegal to kill innocent people too," she argues.

"They weren't—"

"Could have been," Stef interrupts to just repeat herself. "And where are we going?" she questions, once she realizes that I've already started driving somewhere.

* * *

"The school."

"Why?" she looks confused but then a thought hits her. "Is that where Brandon is?" she asks with a hint of glee in her voice, but that glee quickly dissipates and changes to nervousness, "Do not tell me that he's a vice principal and took after Lena?" she eyes me carefully.

"Oh God no! It's worse," I say.

"What?" her tone is full of worry.

"I can't say it," I voice in a depressing tone and hold my hands up to my face in an effort to hide my pretend shame. I start to fake cry, "I promised to never say it out loud."

"What?" Stef asks anxiously.

"He's a...a…a student."

"Very funny, Cal."

I laugh and look up at her, "I scared you for a second. Didn't I?"

"Not at all," she answers as she looks out the window to avoid my gaze with slight embarrassment written all over hers.

"You would be proud to hear that your son is a graduate from the Manhattan School of Music. And he will be transferring to Thornton in the spring to get his masters."

"Music? You got him interested in music again?" she asks with surprise evident in her voice.

"Not exactly. He was never uninterested. I guess when we left; he found a new reason to keep playing. He missed you guys so much that he started putting his feelings into his songs. He plays much better now. I can't wait for you to hear him."

Stef stays silent and I could tell that I made her cry, "I'm sorry, Stef. I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean that leaving you inspired him to play or anything, I just meant—"

"No, I know what you meant, Callie. It's fine. But you said he was transferring to Thornton? That's a good school…"

"Uhuh."

"But it's almost…what? 2hours away?"

"Um, I think so. It's actually not that far when you think about it…Closer than New York," I smile, letting her know that it wasn't too bad of a distance as compared to across the country where we were.

"Yeah, yeah," she answers nervously. "You're right…But still 2 hours is a pretty long trip for him to make everyday."

I squint my eyes at her, "I mean…if that's what he wants…"

* * *

We sit in silence for a long while until I finally have the courage to speak up again, "How's everybody? And Jude?"

"Everyone's fine. Jude is just fine," she smiles at me. "He's a senior now and going off to college soon himself, hopefully."

"What do you mean hopefully?" I ask nervously.

"Well, last time we checked he said he wasn't going but—"

"What do you mean he said he wasn't going? He has to go! Did you tell him that he has to go?" I raise my voice and relax when I realize who I am speaking to, "…Sorry."

"No, I completely agree with you. We've had a talk with him, and he said that he'd think about it. But we all know, that he's going whether he likes it or not. I mean, if anyone can get someone to do what they want, it's me," she says and then pauses. "…Well, most of the time anyway," she smiles at me and I know that she's referring to Brandon and I.

I move my gaze from the road to her, "I'm s—"

"I told you to stop apologizing, Callie." She points in the direction in front of us, "Eyes on the road. I see that your driving skills haven't improved a bit," she teases.

I glance back at the street. "What about Mom— Lena," I correct myself.

"If she's seen Brandon already, I bet she's pretty fine now. Mariana and Jesus are, well…they're still Mariana and Jesus. Not much has changed there. And Gavin is 5 now, and behaves like an angel with Mama, but is a completely different with me."

"Uh-oh," I joke. "And how is that working out?"

"Well, I'm the 'mean mommy.' _His words, not mine_."

"Awww. I'm sorry, Stef," I smile and try to imagine him calling her that in my head. She notices me laughing and smiling.

"Oh, just you wait until you have kids. You won't be smiling then," she points at me accusingly but I know that she's joking.

I stay silent.

"…Wait, do you and Brandon have kids?" she asks worriedly.

"No… We don't have kids."

_It's the truth. She didn't ask if I was pregnant._

"That's a relief," she let out a deep breath. "It would be hard for you to keep your mind focused at work, thinking about having a baby at home and all. Plus, you become a nervous wreck when you're working because you're afraid that if something happens to you, what will happen to the baby. It's good that we don't have to worry about any of that stuff either, right?" she laughs and I give her a forced-smile as we pull up in front of the school.

_If she feels this way about the thought of me already having a kid, I don't even want to know how she'll feel about me being pregnant. _

_I didn't want her to hover over me or to think that I couldn't handle my new job the moment I came back._

_I realize that telling her too soon could affect how she views me completely._

_As her partner._

_And as her daughter. _


	7. Chapter 7

**Brandon's POV**

After Jude storms out of Lena's office, I contemplate on going after him. But the moment I reached for the doorknob, she stops me. "Brandon, I don't think that's a good idea. He just needs some time to… adjust to all of this. He's just surprised is all."

"Is that what you all think?" I ask when the sudden realization dawns over me.

"What?"

"That I took her from you?"

"Brandon…that was a long time ago—"

I interrupt her, "That's not what I asked." I lower my tone when I realize that she's not the one I'm really mad at. I was the one that screwed it up for Jude and for them. "Is everyone else still mad at me?"

"No, Brandon," she tries to assure me but I'm not so sure I believe her.

I'd rather be told the truth now and not risk any more surprises. I wanted to be prepared. "What about mom? Does she still hate me? I know she does."

"Your mom and I could never hate you, Brandon. Neither of you… To be honest, we were confused at first… And angry. But so much time has passed since then, and we understand now, why you did it. Mariana and Jesus were outraged with the both of you, but they've moved passed those feelings. And Jude will come around. He just took this the hardest..."

"What if he doesn't? Callie won't be able to take it, if he treats her anything like he just treated me. How could he say that she didn't miss him? She dreaded the thought of leaving him. He was all she ever thought about. And what? Now she has to dread the thought of coming back to him." I shake my head with annoyance, "I told her that coming back was a bad idea. I won't have her see him like this. Especially not now."

"What do you mean?" she asks in confusion.

My cell-phone's text-tone went off, distracting me from the conversation. It was Callie's tone. "Hold on one second."

I glance at the screen and read it:

**Change of plans. We can't tell them about the baby yet. Long story. Fill you in later. Btw, we're walking inside of the school.**

I put my phone back in my pocket.

"Brandon?" Lena tries to get my attention focused on her again.

"Huh?"

"You just said that you wouldn't allow her to see Jude like this now. Why?"

"Because…" I start nervously. "He hates us, and I don't want him to hurt her. She's already been through so much hurt and I won't allow him to yell at my wife like he just yelled at me."

Lena nods her head, and I can she's surprised by my defensiveness toward Callie. But I can't help how I feel. And it's just gotten worse since I heard about the baby news. The last thing I wanted was for her to be upset at all.

"That's completely understandable… but don't you think that it should be her decision to make? You're not going to tell her to just leave after you just got here, because you're afraid that she'd get hurt…And besides, who knows best how to calm Jude down, than Callie?" she smiled and put her hand on my shoulder. "Have a little faith in her."

* * *

Just then we heard a knock on the door.

Lena sighs, "Who is it?"

"It's me," I hear mom's voice answer, causing my nerves to rise from a 3 to a 10 in a millisecond.

Lena must've noticed because she looks at me and whispers, "Relax," as if that would really help. I nod though as if it does. I have no other choice. "Come in, babe."

Mom opens the door slowly and stands at the doorway, staring at me with an obvious gleam in her eyes. I was glad that she actually seemed happy to see me, since I thought she would be the most anger-filled one of them all. I watch as she takes a deep breath and tears begin to fill in her eyes, which just upsets me. That was the very last thing I wanted to happen. "Mom, please don't cry," I beg but she just leaps into my arms.

"Don't you dare tell me not to cry, after finally seeing my son for the first time in years," she orders but she holds onto me tightly, as if she were actually trying to hurt me, or as if she was afraid that if she didn't, I'd actually get away again.

I hug her back and couldn't help but tear up too. I've always missed her but it wasn't until she was standing right in front of me that I realized how much.

"B, promise me something?" I hear her ask with a cracking-voice.

"Anything," I chuckle, afraid of what she was going to make me promise, but fully willing to do it.

I would do anything for her at this moment.

She loosens her grip on me and looks into my eyes, "Promise me not to ever do something so incredibly STUPID again?"

I glance over her shoulder at Lena, and see that she too is waiting for my reply. I turn my gaze to Callie who just walks through the doorway and see her smiling at the sight of my mother and I.

"I promise," I answer.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey! Sorry guys. I know I haven't really updated my fics in a couple of days. I'm really sick and my head is killing me so writing doesn't seem very enticing at the moment :( I have some of the next chapter of That Was Then, This Is Now written, so that should be updated tomorrow and I will try my best to update Branded tomorrow as well. I'm not being lazy, just not in the greatest mood to write, and if I do write while I'm in this mood, anything I publish will be crappy so yeah... **

**On another note, I have just started watching that show, _Lost Girl,_ on Netflix and I absolutely love it so far. I'd recommend checking it out if you're bored. I've only binge watched the first season yesterday but there's still 3 more to catch up on. But I got hooked on the first episode so that should tell you it's really good and definitely worth checking out.**

**Okay. I'm done with that...**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

As soon as Stef and I reach the school parking lot, I freeze. This was supposed to be the easiest part for me. Seeing Lena again was supposed to be the least stressful of all of this. But the second we're in the parking lot and I see the window of her office, I wasn't quite sure I could handle it like I thought I could. Everyone knew that Lena was the most understanding of us all. But everyone didn't wake up that morning with Lena staring down at them with excitement, and leave her with a disappointed look on her face that very same day.

* * *

_FLASHBACK TO THE MORNING OF ADOPTION_

_Callie was awoken by the faint smell of coffee nearby. The moment she opened her eyes, she could see Lena smiling at her as the woman held the mug in front of the girl's face, "Hey slug-a-bug. I thought that might get your attention."_

_Callie smiled. "It did… thanks," she said as she sat up and reached for the mug. "What time is it?"_

"_10:30. I know we don't have to be at the courthouse until 1, but I don't know…I thought we could talk first."_

_Callie took her lips off of the mug nervously. "Why? What happened? Is something wrong?" The last thing she needed was for something to go wrong. She'd had enough close calls in the past year and a half. If anything else wrong were to happen, she would be sure to leave it in destiny's hands. She couldn't handle anymore trying._

"_No" Lena tried to assure her with a smile, "Nothing like that. I just… wanted to make sure, that this is what you really want. After what happened last night with Brandon, I just—"_

"_I'm sorry about that," Callie tried to apologize. She felt horrible after Lena had to witness the unexpected kiss in the music room after school. If Callie knew that it was going to happen, she wouldn't have gone to meet him there. She hadn't planned on kissing him all, but she had to follow her gut... Stupidly, she had to follow it._

"_No, I know that wasn't your fault. I saw exactly what happened Callie. He kissed you. And… your mom and I had a talk with him, so he knows that the kiss was unacceptable. Also…" she paused as she adjusted her own coffee mug in her other hand, "…he agreed that he shouldn't come to the court with us today. I just want to make sure that you're sure about all of this before—"_

"_I am," Callie interrupted her. "I want you guys to be my family. All of you. And if that means that Brandon and I can't be together, then…that's what's going to have to happen." Her expression and tone remained serious, as she was trying to be mature about all of this. Honestly, she didn't want to lose the family that she cared for more than anything and she didn't want to let Jude down either. If this was the only way she could have them all in her life, then it's exactly what she was going to choose._

_And Callie heard the words come out of her own mouth, so she knew that she had said them._

_Didn't that mean that she had to believe them too?_

_Lena nodded her head and looked up at her daughter, "It's just…How do I put this?... I want to know if you're going to be prepared if…let's just say, he doesn't agree to accept you as a sister. At least not yet anyway. I'm sure, that with time, he'll get used to the idea. But he doesn't seem to be as on-board with this adoption as the rest of us. He will accept it though; so don't worry about any of that. We just want to know that you're prepared to become a part of this family?"_

_Callie smiled and nodded her head yes, even though it hurt her to lie to her. If she thinks that Brandon will get over it, then she would too, right?_

_FLASHBACK ENDED_

* * *

"Hey, partner. Are you okay?" Stef asks curiously. As she walks over to me and I realize I completely zoned out in from of the school building.

"What? Yeah? Why wouldn't I be?" I ask her.

"You know… we don't blame you for leaving, yes?" she says as she wraps her arm around my shoulder.

"You told me that already," I remind her.

"I just want to make sure you know that…"

"I do," I assure her. "…I actually forgot my phone in the car. You should head on in. I'll be there in a minute."

"Callie?"

"I just need a minute. Promise," I smile and she nods her head and begins walking inside of the school. I watch her walk all the way in before I finally get back inside of the car to take deep breaths for a couple of minutes before I'm able to step back out and walk towards the school.

I promised myself I wouldn't chicken-out so that's the very last thing I should be doing. Even if the worst happened, at least I could say that I tried.

* * *

And before I know it, I'm stand in the doorway of Lena's office, and I can't help but feel relieved when Stef runs up to hug Brandon.

Every fear he felt, every thought he dreaded, every scenario he played out in his mind, had suddenly dissipated, the second his mother wrapped his arms around him again.

"Callie?" I hear Lena's shocked voice and I turn around to see her eyeing my face… and then my uniform. "Um, sweetheart…" she looks over toward Stef, "Please tell me that our daughter is wearing a Halloween costume," she asks as she walks over towards me.

I have to laugh, "In the middle of August?"

"You've come back, just to give me a heart attack," she says as she wraps her arms around me and gives me a tight hug, which startles me.

"That's exactly why I came back," I answer, before she loosens the hug and looks at me again. "What?" I ask.

"I just… can't believe you came back a cop," she says as she turns to Stef and points at her accusingly, "This was your fault."

"My fault?" Stef asks in surprise.

"Yes, it is …But now, you'll get to see first hand what I have to put up with when you're at work. Karma at it's best."

Stef smirks, "Oh, please, Lena. You think I'd let anything happen to my partner, let alone my own daughter?" she asks as she turns to look at me.

"Oh, your partner?" Lena asks surprisingly as she wrinkles her forehead.

I shake my head, "No, Stef. At work, I'm just your partner. We were both there when we talked with the captain. And she agreed to this, only if it wouldn't interfere with either of our performances. So… no crowding me at work."

Lena raises her eyebrows and looks at Stef.

Stef fake-laughs. "Righhhttt…" she says sarcastically.

"I mean it," I tell her.

"Yeah, that's what's so funny," Stef chuckles again and Lena tries her best to hide the smile that wants to form on her face so badly.

I keep my face straight.

_I need Stef to take me seriously, especially since she doesn't think I can handle the job and have a kid._

_I had to prove her wrong somehow. _

"Alright Tiger," she puts her hands up, "Take it easy…easy," she says as she walks over and places and her arm around me.

I glance at my watch, "It's 1:00. Our workday has officially started, and that's Officer JacobsFoster to you," I tell her as I remove her arm from around mine and place it back to her side.

I could feel her giving me a stunned expression. But I don't dare look at her, because I know I'd just burst out laughing.

Instead I walk over to Brandon and give him a quick kiss, "Bye baby. See you at home."

He covers up his mouth so that Stef couldn't see the smile that crept along his own face at what I had just done, but she sees it anyway, "Watch it, mister."

I walk over to Lena and give her another hug before leaving, "I guess, I'll see you later?"

"Absolutely," she says as she hugs me back and looks over my shoulder to Stef.

And as soon as we let go, I turn to my partner, who's just standing there with the same surprised expression.

"Are we going to get to work? Or has the job already warn you out?" I joke, knowing that my comment would strike a nerve. And immediately afterwards, I walk out of Lena's office, twirling the car keys in my hand.

"Oh, it's on," I hear her answer from behind.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This chapter is Rated M (for Maybe it's bad) because of the language :/ Same goes for the one after this.**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

For hours, Stef and I just drove around the town, giving people parking tickets and questioning the random and uninteresting behavior of a few people. But to be honest, I was getting rather bored and I felt that she was taking it easy on me on purpose.

Every time we pulled someone over, I was forced to stay in the car and run license plate numbers into the system, while she approached the vehicles.

_This can't be what she did with all of her other partners,_ I think to myself.

I watch as she gets back into the car after writing the tenth ticket for today. As soon as she turns to face me, I give her the most bored look I could muster.

"What's wrong?" she says casually but the grin on her face bothers me, while I watch as she puts her seatbelt on before putting the car in drive.

"You're joking, right?" I ask her, crossing my arms over my chest and lifting my eyebrows before I quickly uncross them, when I realize how childish I must've looked to her.

"What do you mean?" Stef asks, but the radio interrupts us before I get a chance to respond.

"Code purple. We've got a possible assault with a deadly weapon by five white males at the corner of state and 3rd. Requesting backup."

My eyes light up at the thought of some action. Although we had the training session earlier, Stef scaring me and trying to distract me during the obstacles was far from the action I was looking for. Stef sees the desperation in my eyes before she grabs the receiver and places it in front of her mouth, "10-10."

"What does that mean? We're going, right?" I ask hopefully.

She sighs, "10-10 means that we're off duty."

"But we're not," I remind her.

"Sure we are," she says cheerfully. "I need a coffee break, Callie. There's a coffee spot right around the corner from here," she answers.

_Is she really doing this?_ I wonder.

"How long are you going to keep this up?"

"What do you mean?" she asks innocently.

"You're crowding me because you don't think I can handle the job?" I insist.

"That's not true," she says matter-of-factly.

"Really?" I ask in disbelief, giving her a chance to admit the truth.

"I know you can handle the job, sweets. I'm just taking it easy on you on your first day. That's all."

"By what? Leaving me sitting in the car the entire time? How am I supposed to learn anything, if I'm just typing numbers into the system? Did you do this with all of your other partners?"

I can tell by her expression that she's taken aback by the fact I'm questioning her training technique, but at this point I don't really care. "…On their first day? Absolutely, I did."

"Yeah right," I fake-laugh.

Stef lets out a long frustrated breath and keeps her eyes on the road as she drives without another word.

As soon as she pulls in front of the place, I get out of the car before she could fully put it in park.

"Callie?" I hear her say.

"What?" I retort. "Don't think I can handle grabbing two cups of coffee on my own? How will I ever make it to the coffee machine and back without getting hurt?" I ask with an exaggerated and helpless voice. _Yes, it was childish but I needed her to realize how irrational she's being._

She sighs again and attempts to reach into her pocket, "Let me give you some money befo—"

* * *

"I got it," I stop her and close the car door forcefully, before I walk into the little bodega and made my way over to the coffee machine. The entire time I couldn't help but run over the terrible day I've had. _She couldn't keep doing this. I couldn't let her keep doing this. I know that I have to be assertive with her, but how could I be when she's the one training me. This was the dumbest idea that Captain Roberts could ever come up with. What the hell was wrong with her? Putting a mother and daughter as partners on the field? I could've watched an episode of Police Women in Maricopa County episode and gotten more out of it than I have been getting actually being on duty myself with Stef._

I take a deep breath when I realize that nothing in my inner thoughts are helping the situation at all. I would have to get out and tell her exactly what I think about her training technique. She'd have to understand.

Or maybe I'd just ask the captain for a new partner. But how bad would that look on my first day? I can't do that.

_Breathe, Callie. Breathe._

_It's quiet in here_, I realize as I grab two medium sized cups from the table. I pour decaf in one and caffeinated in the other, making sure to put a straw in mine, so that I'd no the difference. _God! What I would do for an actual regular coffee right about now… I'm cranky enough in the morning as it is, but coffee always helped. And now I couldn't even enjoy that._

And the moment I put the lids on the both of them and attempt to walk toward the register, I freeze at a loud man's voice coming from the front of the store, "OPEN THE FUCKING REGISTER BEFORE I BLOW YOUR FUCKING HEAD OFF!"


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: For those of you who are questioning how Callie can work in the police force and be pregnant at the same time, here's some info: According to a very recent article in the Police Chief Magazine, "**The federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) requires that employers treat "women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions" the same in employment "as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work." The PDA was designed to "guarantee women the basic right to participate fully and equally in the workforce, without denying them the fundamental right to full participation in family life. Many progressive law enforcement agencies provide for adequate maternity leave, light duty assignments, maternity uniforms and body armor… Law enforcement officers may be required to confront dangerous situations that demand strenuous physical exertion. They must wear, carry, and use specialized equipment. They must be able to quickly get out of vehicles and perform rescue operations. In nearly every case, a pregnant woman will have difficulty performing these tasks late in a pregnancy, but until that time, "an employee must be permitted to work at all times during pregnancy when she is able to perform her job." **A law enforcement agency may not remove a pregnant officer from her assignment, or compel her to assume a light duty assignment, unless she cannot perform the essential functions of a police officer.****It is unlawful for an employer to take "anticipatory" action against a pregnant employee, or to make general assumptions about the impact that a pregnancy might have on a woman's ability to do her job.** **Employers may not change a pregnant employee's assignment against her will based on stereotypes about what types of work pregnant women should do, concerns about public perceptions of pregnant officers, or notions of fetal protection.****A pregnant employee should not be forced into a light duty assignment as long as she is physically able to perform her regular assignment.** Likewise, she should not be permitted to elect a light duty assignment before it is medically necessary…"

**If you guys would like more information on this, I can send you the link or you can just Google the article yourself.**

**Warning: There will be some minor cursing will be in this chapter.**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

And the moment I put the lids on the both of the coffee cups and attempted to walk over toward the register, I froze at a loud man's voice coming from the front of the store, "OPEN THE FUCKING REGISTER BEFORE I BLOW YOUR FUCKING HEAD OFF!"

_What the hell? _is my first reaction.

My second_, Shit! Shit! Shit! _

I immediately peak my head outside of one of the aisles and realize that I couldn't see whom the voice was coming from.

_That's not helpful. _

I slowly withdraw my gun from my belt and quietly begin to walk in the direction of the front of the store. That's when I hear another man's harsh voice, "I don't know bruh. I think he's going too slow for us."

_Of course there had to be more than one…of course._

* * *

**Stef's POV**

The moment Callie slammed the car door shut; I knew that she was pissed at me.

_This is her first day_, I try to reason.

_I should be going easy on her. I wasn't doing anything wrong. I needed to let her get a feel for the job before she actually has to do anything even remotely dangerous._

But then… I realize how we normally treat all of the other rookies on their first day. We purposely start them off in the most dangerous situations, just to see if they can hack it as a joke. Most of them can't, and I was saving Callie the misery of that.

I let out a loud sigh. "Maybe I'll let her write out the next ticket," I mumble to myself.

But I didn't expect my portable radio to turn on while I was in the car. I squint my eyebrows in confusion and I smile when I realize that it might be Callie getting ready to be sarcastic about getting the coffees. I try to listen closely, but the sudden harshness of a grown man's voice is what I hear instead, "MOVE IT, BEFORE I SHOOT YOUR SON RIGHT IN BETWEEN HIS EYES!"

"I WANT ALL OF THE MONEY THAT'S UNDER THE REGISTER TOO!" another voice shouted. And within seconds, I realized exactly what was going on.

"Good girl," I whisper to myself as I make my way out of the car and draw out my gun.

I can feel the adrenaline rushing through my body, and I consider quickly running inside of the store. She placed her radio on speaker, so that could mean a bunch of things by now. They could even have her face down on the ground when they realized that there was a cop in there with them. These criminals already had one gun that I'm sure of, and there are at least two men in there.

I quickly make my way over to the front of the store and hide my body behind a poster, sticking my head out a little, so that I could see what was going on. But the first thing I see is one white male pointing his gun toward someone whom I had no direct vision of. I glance around, and see Callie with her gun drawn out and walking slowly over toward them.

_What the hell is this girl doing!_

_Damn it!_

* * *

I don't have time to call for backup because from the looks of it, I'm afraid that Callie is going to try to take them on by herself. I should have called before I got out of the car but I wasn't thinking for some odd reason.

I immediately run towards the front door and open it slowly, trying hard not to push it all the way open so that the bell wouldn't ring.

I see the backs of both armed men and I see that they have their guns drawn out on the two guys at the register, one black and one white. The cashier stupidly looks in my direction and I know that I have no other choice but to announce myself, "POLICE! FREEZE! DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

Both men turn toward my direction with their guns now pointed at me.

"POLICE! DROP THEM NOW!" Callie yells from behind them, as she eyed the two of them carefully making sure not to lose eye contact.

"CALLIE, GO OUTSIDE AND CALL FOR BACKUP!" I yell at her.

But she doesn't budge, which causes me to shoot her the angriest glare that I could muster. Now wasn't the time to argue and she had to listen to me. But she turns her face back toward the men, "I'm not going to do that, Stef."

The white male turns around and points his gun at her head. "No, Stef. She's not going to do that," he repeats as he starts making his way over toward her. "DROP THE GUN BITCH!"

I can feel my body trembling and the gun shaking in my hand with my finger on the trigger. I'm not sure if it was fear for my daughter's life, adrenaline, or both. Callie hesitantly drops her gun and raises her hands up in the air. Part of me wants to shoot a clean whole through his back, but I could still feel the other guy's gun pointed at me.

"Hey! Relax. Don't hurt her. We'll do as you say."

"THEN GET DOWN ON THE FLOOR! BOTH OF YOU!" the white male instructs.

"You sure you want me to do that?" Callie asks him.

_What are you doing Cal?_ I want to shout at her. The last thing that she should be doing is egging on two men with guns.

"DID I STUTTER?" he yells at her as he steps even closer.

I speak up, "No, you didn't stutter. We got it." I drop my gun too, and watch as Callie leans down onto the ground. "You too bitch!" he orders as he turns around and points the gun that he had pointed at Callie on me, which is something that I honestly preferred. But before I knew it, I could see Callie reaching for her ankle gun.

I want nothing more than to shake my head at her and tell her no, but that would only give her away and probably get us both killed.

_Damn it, Callie!_

I glance at my gun and consider reaching for it again, but both men had their eyes fixed on me and one kicks it away. At that exact moment, Callie grabs onto the man's legs and trips him.

The black guy, who still had his gun pointed at me, turns his it towards Callie, and I immediately reach for my ankle gun and tackle him onto the ground. I place my weapon in his face, and he immediately drops his gun besides me. I pushed it away with my hand and look up, to see Callie struggling with the other man. She was on top of him and trying to push his hands and gun away from her face.

"DROP IT OR I WILL SHOOT!" I yell. He turns his face toward mine and sees his partner lying on the ground with my foot on his back, completely defenseless.

"FUCK, MAN!" he grunts before he stops fighting and finally releases the gun. Callie grabs it and places it behind her back. She slowly moves off of him and forcefully turns his body around and takes out her cuffs.

I cuff the other man but keep my eyes on the other two the entire time. I couldn't risk looking away and having Callie lose control of him. "You're both under arrest for robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, and assaulting a police officer," I inform them.


	11. Chapter 11

**Callie's POV**

After we brought both men into the car, I can't help but hope that today was successful. Stef was finally going to be able to take me seriously. _I did just save both of our asses in there_._ That should count for something._

But the second Stef closes the car door, she whips her body around to face me, "What the hell were you thinking?" she starts in an angry tone, which I thought was completely uncalled for.

"What?" I ask in confusion.

"What?!" she repeats, as if I should know exactly what I did wrong. "What in the world led you to believe that you could take down two grown men, Callie? …With guns no less?"

I have to stare at her in awe for a long time before I can respond.

_Was she even there?_ I question myself_. Did she not see that I was the one that got us out of that mess?_

"Stef," I begin, "…I'm pretty sure I just saved your ass in there," I inform her.

"No, Callie! You almost got us both killed with that stunt you just pulled! You don't do that! You don't just take matters into your own hands, when there's weapons, not to mention civilians, in charge! The first thing… the very first thing you should have done was call for backup!"

"I should have called for backup?" I question her. "What do you think I turned my walkie on for? You should've called for backup, instead of just… walking in like a psycho!"

"I was afraid of what you would do!" she argues.

"I was going to wait for backup!" I retort angrily. And I had never raised my voice to this woman, but somehow we both managed to become so utterly enraged that our faces were tense with anger and out voices were louder than ever, despite the fact that we were only standing a couple feet apart. I tried my best to take a deep breath and calm down but I couldn't help defending myself when she continued to blame me for what happened.

"I saw you through the window, Callie. You were not going to wait! You had your gun drawn out and were walking directly towards those two men!"

"I was walking towards them so that I could get a better look!" I yell back. "And I had my gun drawn out so that I wouldn't be unarmed if they did see me!"

"You shouldn't have done that!"

"What?" I snap and realize that I'm getting out of hand. I take another deep breath and one step back. "Okay… Stef, are you mad that I did that, or are you mad because I didn't get call for back up when I couldn't? Which one is it?"

"I'm mad that you let your impulsiveness get in the way. You're not invincible, Callie. This," she shook her head, "…This is the main problem nowadays with rookies. You don't think before you do something—"

"And you do?"

"What does that mean?" she asks.

"Running inside of the store like a crazy person, announcing that you're a cop to two men with guns! Does that sound like something a non-impulsive person would do? I mean, who the hell does that?"

"Watch it!" she orders me, as if we weren't event at work. "I was trying to protect you from them!"

"I didn't need protection! I was doing fine! I needed you to call for backup, before you just decided to run in without thinking twice about it!"

"I don't think I did anything wrong," she says sternly. "It's my job to train you and…I was doing just that…so…" she shrugs her shoulders.

_That was when I knew that this was a big mistake._

I can tell that my silence makes her nervous, "What?" she questions as she crosses her arm over her chest.

"That's the problem. You don't think you did anything wrong…" I sigh, knowing that we aren't getting anywhere. "…You know what? Just forget it. It doesn't even matter," I say as I start to open the passenger-side car door.

She quickly closes it back, "What does that mean?"

"Nothing," I answer flatly.

"No," she starts. "What does it mean?"

"…You're never going to take me seriously as a cop, so I don't even know why I even tried."

"That's not true," she says nonchalantly. "I do take you seriously."

"No, you don't," I tell her. "You think I can't handle it… And I would think that after today, you would see that, but I was obviously wrong… This was a mistake, Stef. Tomorrow I'm going to ask for another partner, because I can't have a partner that doesn't trust me."

"No, Callie," she shakes her head. "I do trust you. I just… Oh my God," she mumbles as she raises her hand to her cheek and scratches it. "…I just don't know how to think when it comes to any of my kids being in danger—"

"But I'm not a kid anymore, Stef. I'm a woman, I grown woman, who's a cop, and your partner… I went to the police academy just like you, and had my own training, not to mention the fact that I have a brain."

"I know you do, baby," she tries to console me.

But I just glare at her for calling me that in front of the two grown men that are staring at us strangely in the backseat of the squad car. I'm sure that they have overheard our entire conversation, and they think that we're lunatics. She looks at them too, "I'm sorry…Officer JacobFoster," she says awkwardly. "Look, I know that you did the right thing, and… maybe I am overreacting just a little bit."

I give her a wide-eyed look.

"Okay, a lot," she corrects. "I admit that I did mess things up by not trusting you. It… won't happen again." I raise my eyebrows at her, surprised by her words. She continues, "I'm just going to have learn to trust your instincts more. And it's going to be a working progress, but please don't ask for a new partner, Callie. I'd rather you be with me than some other newbie, that will get you in even more trouble."

"So… you do trust me?" I ask her in confusion.

Stef smiles, "Yes, Callie I trust you."

"And you think I can handle being a cop?"

"Yes, I know you can," she says with certainty as she pulls my head towards her and plants a kiss on my forehead.

I roll my eyes as she lets go and backs up. _Why did this feel like she was contradicting herself?_ I question. She puts her hands up in front of her in submission, "I'm backing off. I'm backing off."

"…And you promise that you're not going to hover over me anymore? Or make me sit in a car all day?"

Stef hesitates before she answers, "…Yes."

I grab the car keys from her hand and start walking over to the other side of the vehicle to unlock the car door, "Good… Because _I am_ carrying your grandchild and wouldn't want that to affect what you just promised me…"


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

* * *

**Callie's POV**

I immediately enter the driver's side of the car and start the engine, waiting for Stef to open the passenger's side door and do the same.

_She doesn't. _

I don't even bother looking in her direction, because I'm so afraid of what her face looks like.

_Maybe I shouldn't have told her like that_… I realize. But she was making it so difficult for me to say anything and I was so stressed out. It felt like the perfect moment... like a now or never situation.

She said that she trusted me… That she would stop hovering over me. How could I waste that opportunity?

Maybe I selfish, but I had to stop the voice inside of my head.

"Okay…." I mumble to myself as I take out my phone to see if Brandon called or texted me.

_Nope._

"What'd you do to her?" the white male in the backseat asks me, as he stares at Stef curiously from the inside of the car.

"Why? What is she doing?" I ask him as I keep my eyes on my phone's screen.

"I don't think she's breathing," he answers. "She's standing, but she looks like she's about to pass out."

I sigh and finally look over and see her staring out into space, something I've never seen her do before.

_This is ridiculous. I should drive around the block a few times, and see if she's still here when I get back._ I think to myself.

Instead, I beep the horn knowing that it would get some reaction out of her. She jumps at the loud sound and stares at me blankly.

I lower the passenger-side widow all the way, so that she could hear me. "Are you going to stand there all day, or are you going to help me take these guys in?"

Yes, I was being inconsiderate but her lack of a reaction was stressing me out even more.

After a few seconds I see her hand reach for the car door-handle and she gets inside of the car slowly.

I drive off immediately after I hear the door close. All four of us sit in complete silence for a while, until I decide to raise the radio's volume. I have no idea whether she's staring at me or not, but I don't glance back at her either.

_I don't think I want to know._

_I was not supposed to tell her._

Brandon and I promised to tell them all together, with the moms, Jesus, Mariana, and Gavin all there.

He was going to kill me when he found out.

Even though the radio was on, I had never heard such complete silence in my life.

I press harder on the gas just so we could get to the precinct faster.

_I need to get out of this car._

* * *

**Stef's POV**

As soon as we pull up, in front of the parking lot, Callie opens the car door and gets out.

I knew I had to say something and my silence wasn't helping anything, but I had no clue where to even start.

_All of this chaos in one day, and now Callie drops that bomb on me. _

_First her and Brandon show up out of the blue, after 5 years of absolutely no contact._

_Then, I find out Callie's a cop._

_To make matters worse, the same people in the backseat of the squad car almost killed us just an hour ago._

_And now she's telling me that she's carrying my grandchild? That she was pregnant the whole time._

_What the hell am I supposed to say?_

I'm taken out of my thoughts, the second I see her opening the backseat door and lifting one of the men out of the car, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! What are you doing? What are you doing? What are you doing?" I ask incessantly. And before I know it I'm grabbing the suspect from her.

"Uh...My job?" she gives me a questioning look.

"Uh…No," I answer as I slam the door back shut.

_What is she thinking?_ I wonder.

_I can't let her do this.  
_

_Especially now._

I start to walk the male back inside of the precinct and hand him over to another officer, "Attempted Robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, and assault to a police officer," I tell him and the officer nods his head and grabs hold of the robber.

I walk back outside only to see Callie walking over with the other man.

"Hey!" I yell. She completely ignores me and continues to walk the guy inside. I reach over to grab him from her but she refuses to let go.

"I've got this, Stef!" she yells as she tries to yank him from me, but I tug on his other arm.

"Callie, let go!" I warn her.

"No, you let go," she says with an angry tone.

* * *

"Is everything alright here?" Captain Roberts asks and she walks toward us.

Just as I was about to reply, Callie beats me to it, "Yes, ma'am. I was just about to take Mr. Ohara inside for booking."

_Oh, no she didn't! _I think as I glare at her, knowing that she did that on purpose.

"Go, on, Callie. I actually want a second with Stef anyway," the Captain says casually. "Good work today," she nods.

"Thank you, Captain," Callie answers.

I stare after both, Callie and the robber, as they walk into the building and fight the urge to follow them in, the second that they're out of my sight. And I would if my Captain wasn't staring at me.

"Stef?"

"Yes, Captain?" I answer while still looking over her shoulder.

"Mind telling me what the hell was that?" she questions.

"What was what?" I ask innocently, hoping that she hadn't seen the entire debacle or that she wouldn't bring it up.

"You and your partner trying to tear, a cuffed man, in half just a few seconds ago?"

I ignore her comment, "Did you know that she's pregnant?" I ask her almost threateningly. _No, she couldn't know_, I realize. _It has to come as a shock to her as well. She would surely take her off duty now that I've told her._

Captain Roberts sighs and looks at the ground before she answers, "…Yes, Stef. She told me."

_What! She told my boss before me?_ I cannot even fathom how angry I am about this.

"And you just let her go out there?" I ask accusingly.

Roberts crosses her arms, "Yes? Is that a problem?"

"That you let my pregnant daughter come to work with me, knowing just how dangerous it could be? Yes, that is a problem!" I had never spoken with my boss like this before, but we were talking about one of my children, and now my grandchild.

_All potential fear: GONE_.

"First off, Stef. Callie didn't come to work with you. She works here now. Second of all, she's pregnant. _Not_ disabled. Third off, I didn't _let_ her do anything. She applied for this job on her own."

"Come on, Captain. You could've put her on light-duty, if you knew that she was pregnant. She shouldn't have been out there like that."

"Light-duty is _optional_, Stef. I can't force her to take it if she doesn't want to. It's against the law due to the PDA. AND Callie agreed that she would switch to light-duty, when she felt ready enough to do so."

"Oh, she _feels _ready," I assure her.

Captain Roberts puts her hands up in submission, "Alright, Stef. I think you need to have this conversation with Callie."

"Oh, I will," I smile because I already know that Callie's going to have to listen to me.

"But keep in mind, that she already has her mind made up. And she is an adult. She doesn't need your approval anymore, Stef… And also keep in mind that what just happened right now, you questioning me… will not be happening again. I gave you a little leeway because Callie is your daughter and I know you're protective of her, but remember that I am still _your_ boss. Is that clear?"

I swallow hard and take a deep breath, "Yes, ma'am. I heard ya loud and clear. I'm sorry."

"Good."

To be continued…


End file.
